Talon: Sorry it was terrible? No. I’m not. Sorry you went? Yeah, means I haven’t told you things I should.
Riley: Honest answer. I appreciate that.
She appreciated his honesty, even when it revealed things he probably shouldn't be feeling. When had they gotten to the point where complete honesty felt safe?
Talon: Always.
With her, he would always be honest. She’d earned that from him and more besides.
Talon stood in the Colosseum,surrounded by tourists and history, but his mind was on a woman thousands of miles away. The scale of the ancient architecture was humbling, but it also made him think about perspective, about what mattered in the grand scheme of things.
Talon: In Rome. The history here is overwhelming.
He wanted to share this with her, to hear her perspective on the weight of centuries, on how the past shapes the present.
Riley: In a good way?
Talon: Humbling. Makes you realize how small your problems are in the grand scheme.
But also how precious the small moments were, how important individual connections could be even in the face of vast historical forces.
Riley: And how important the small moments are.
Exactly.She grasped the duality of feeling both insignificant and essential simultaneously. Their conversations were small moments, but they'd become the most important part of his days.
Talon: Exactly. Like these conversations.
Like these conversations that had become his anchor, his reason to look forward to the quiet moments between missions.
Riley: Are we having a moment, Talon?
The question made his heart race in a way that gunfights and tactical operations never did. Were they having a moment? They'd been having moments for months—small admissions, shared vulnerabilities, the slow build of something that was bigger than friendship.
Talon: I hope so.
The safest answer he could give while still beinghonest. Maybe they were having a moment. Maybe this was more than friendship. Maybe he was falling in love with her one text message at a time.
Riley: Good. I like our moments. I need them.
The admission made something warm and hopeful bloom in his chest. She wasn’t just tolerating his attention—she welcomed it, enjoyed it, wanted more of it.He glanced at the enormity of the Colosseum and realized the venue was insignificant compared to the relationship they were building. That was enormous.
Talon:One year ago today, I found you in that container.
It felt like a lifetime and an instant all at once. One year since the worst day of her life became the beginning of the best thing in his.
Riley: Yes, I remember your eyes. Green and so kind.
He wondered if she thought about it the way he did. Not just as the day she was rescued, but as the day their story began. She’d worked through so much in the past year. Was he stupid for thinkingshe would see that day as anything but the bottom dregs of her life?
Talon: Did you ever think we'd end up here?
Where they texted every day, where she was the first person he wanted to share good news with and the last person he talked to before sleep. Where he wanted to fly across the ocean just to take her to dinner and see if the connection that felt so real through screens was even stronger in person?
Riley: Honestly? No. I thought I'd never trust anyone again.
Trust. She'd told him a long time ago that she couldn't name anyone she trusted completely. Now, she trusted him. With her thoughts, her fears, her progress, and her setbacks.
Talon: What changed?
